The Department of "What is It?" (#7): What are the Ultra Famous Holes that this Hole Puncher Punched?

JF Ptak Science Books Quick Post

This is one of the most important hole punchers in the history of holes, and also in the history of counting and figuring out what to do with counted things. Do you know who filed this drawing as part of their patent report, and what famous contribution this thing made?

Answer: the drawing for the hole puncher was actually a key puncher, and was submitted by Herman Hollerith (1860-1929) for his tabulating machine, which was an early analog calculator and one of the most important of its kind for decades to come. It was actually an iconic invention: Hollerith was the first on the scene with a punched card tabulating machine, and stored the data on the punched cards which were then sorted and tabulated. Hollerith's company would later become I.B.M.